A delicious aroma permeates the air and awakens my senses. A smile forms on my face as I inhale the smell of coffee being brewed and food being cooked. I open my eyes, and realize I am still in Cal’s movie room, a blanket protecting me from the coldness of the air conditioning. I quickly peek inside the blanket, and breathe a sigh of relief to see all of my clothes are still on. Last thing I remember from last night was Cal going to get his phone and that was it. How I didn’t hear him come back in or put a blanket on me shows what a deep sleep I was in. I pull off the blanket, stand up, and fold it to put back on the couch.

“Good morning!”

“Ah!” I gasp, and turn around, startled to see him standing in the doorway. He is leaning on the door frame, wearing his pajamas from the previous night with a big grin on his face at my reaction. “You scared me!”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to,” he laughs, pushing off the door frame and coming towards me. I take a step back and fall onto the couch as he approaches me.

“Thanks for letting me crash here last night. I’m so sorry that I fell asleep.” I stand up, feeling awkward that I fell asleep before we could even watch the movie.

“It wasn’t a problem. You’re quite entertaining asleep as well as awake.”

I narrow my eyes at his devilish grin. “What does that mean?” I ask, as embarrassment starts to creep in. Moaning, farting, snoring…the list is endless of things my ex-husband has told me occur in my nightly unconsciousness and I’ll be horrified if I did any of those in front of Cal.

“Did you know you talk in your sleep?”

“I have been told that,” I confirm. He remains silent with a childish grin still on his face.

“So are you going to tell me what I said?”

“Hmm, I think not. Maybe I’ll give you clues throughout the day. By the way, breakfast is ready, I hope you’re hungry.” He heads back toward the door.

My stomach rumbles as if answering him. “Where’s the restroom?” I ask. He points toward its location, and I head briskly in that direction, my bladder screaming at me for release. I relieve my bladder and stifle a scream at my raccoon eyes in the mirror while washing my hands. No wonder he was laughing at me this morning. Why can’t I wake up with my make-up still looking perfect from the night before? While wiping away my mascara, I notice the toiletries on the sink include mouthwash. I take a quick swig, spit it out, and wipe my mouth. I make my way toward the dining room, where I am greeted by the butler, who asks me what I would like to drink.

“Coffee and water would be lovely,” I say, as I look around at all the food options available. Eggs, waffles, fruit, bagels, and danishes are all lined up, ready to be devoured.

“I didn’t know what you like to eat or if you even eat breakfast, so I ordered multiple items. Please dig in.” Cal hands me a plate and proceeds to pile food on his plate.

“I love breakfast, but I actually was going to just grab something light and quick as I need to get on the road if I don’t want to be at the Grand Canyon past dark.” I look at my watch to see it is already 7:30 in the morning. I wanted to be on the road already.

“We can go right after we eat.” Cal shovels a mouthful of eggs into his mouth.

“We?” I raise my eyebrows at him in surprise. I recall him saying he has always wanted to go to the Grand Canyon, but we never discussed him accompanying me.

“I don’t have anything going on today, and figured it would be okay to tag along with you. Do you mind?” He sips his coffee while waiting for my response.

“No, of course I don’t mind,” I say, annoyed with how quickly my pulse starts racing at the thought of another day spent with him.

“I was hoping you’d say that. Why don’t you sit down to eat, and then a car can take you back to the main entrance so you can get ready?” He nods to Steven, who nods in agreement and leaves to go make arrangements for my transportation.

“Thanks,” I softly say and put some eggs and fruit on my plate. I sit down and stare at my plate while I eat, the feeling of confusion overwhelming me. It has been a long time since someone has taken care of details for me. It’s almost unnerving. Why does he want to go with me? He must not like being alone. I take a quick peek at him, and notice he’s just sitting there, reading a newspaper, looking like a supermodel. As if sensing being watched, he looks up and smiles at me.

“Anything interesting going on in the world today?” I motion toward his newspaper.

“Nope, looks like we are all doomed.” He puts it down and smiles.

I chuckle and put my napkin down. “Well, then I better get ready to go to the Grand Canyon with a stranger who can push me off the cliff and no one will know,” I joke, standing up to get ready to leave.

He laughs and escorts me to do the door. “Is an hour enough time for you to get ready?” I nod and Steven greets us at the door.

“Steven will escort you to the car. I’ll pick you up at the main entrance where you’re being dropped off. See you soon.” He hugs me tight, kisses my forehead and goes back into his room. I follow Steven to the car in a dazed state. He just kissed me on the forehead!

The car brings me to the front entrance of the hotel and I briskly walk to the elevators. Once I get into my suite, I shower, lotion up, blow dry my hair, put on some jeans, a cute top, and sneakers. I keep my make-up light since we might be walking around and sweating. The thought of not knowing what we are doing makes me pause. I have never not had anything planned out and not having a car rented or an itinerary to the Grand Canyon makes me nervous. With five minutes left to spare, I spritz on some perfume, stuff two granola bars, and some water into my purse and head for the elevators. I immediately see the same driver as I had before and walk towards him. He opens the door for me, and inside is Cal, hair still wet, smelling divine and looking incredible. He is in dark blue jeans, a black v neck t-shirt that tightens against his chest and aviator sunglasses. There’s probably nothing that this man does not look good in.

“Are you ready for our grand adventure today?” he asks with excitement.

“I’m ready!” I enthusiastically answer back. “But...where are we going?” I ask, wondering if he has made any arrangements in the hour that I was gone.

“To the Grand Canyon.” Cal looks at me as if I’m crazy.

I roll my eyes at his smart-ass response. “Duh, but how are we getting there? Is this car driving us all the way there?”

“Oh no, that would take too long. We’re taking a helicopter there, where a tour guide will show us around.”

I can't help but just stare and blink at him "A helicopter?” My palms start to feel itchy and wet at the thought of being in any transportation that requires being in the air. "How do we know this is a reputable company? Did you read reviews on them? Check to see how many crashes they’ve had?"

He presses his lips together to suppress his smile. "No, I personally didn't look up any reviews on this company, but I trusted that since the hotel books them for their clients on a regular basis, that they would come highly recommended."

I nod and bite my lip, not wanting to sound even more ridiculous than I already do. I hate to show my fear of flying, but it’s an emotion that I’ve been trying to overcome with no success. Let it go, Jenna. This is a once in a lifetime experience. Just trust that everything will be okay.

"What is the name of the company? I will just quickly look them up online." I open Safari on my phone to search for reviews, clearly not able to let go of my fear.

"Jenna," he covers my phone with his hand, "even if I knew the name of the company, I wouldn't tell you. We’re not going to crash. Positive thoughts, everything will be fine. We’re going to have an amazing time!" His reassurance makes me feel only slightly better. I look out the window, and am thankful to see clear skies. Before I can think of any more excuses, we have arrived at the terminal for the helicopter.

“We’re here already? How did we get here so fast?” I nervously giggle, trying to hide my mounting anxiety. I have never been in a helicopter before, and the thought of anything with a propeller scares me more than getting on any jet plane. Our driver opens my car door and I reluctantly get out of the car. I look towards the helicopter, its sleek design shining in the sunshine, and quietly say a little prayer to keep us safe. The pilot is outside of the helicopter, waiting to greet us. Cal grabs my hand and practically drags me with him, his excitement overpowering my weariness.

“Good morning, Mr. Harrington, Ms. Pruitt. My name is Captain Michael Bowen, and it’s my pleasure to be taking you to the Grand Canyon today. Let’s quickly go over some safety features before we get into the helicopter.” I listen intently to our captain, making mental notes of everything he shows us inside the helicopter. With his safety speech ending much to quickly for my liking, he opens the helicopter door. With both men being chivalrous, I climb in first with Cal trailing in behind me. We put our seat belts on, then add our headphones so we can hear the pilot. I take a deep breath as I watch the pilot get into his seat to get ready. I start my silent prayers to keep us safe and close my eyes when I hear the engine turn on and the rotor start to spin. I feel a warm, strong hand squeeze mine and I open my eyes to look at Cal.

“Whatever is meant to be, will be, Jenna. Live in the moment. This is going to be incredible.” He kisses my forehead and tries to pull me as close to him as the seat belts will allow. I mouth “thank you” to him and squeeze his hand, hoping he can sense my appreciation. He is absolutely right - I do need to live in the moment and enjoy it. Keep your eyes open the whole time, Jenna. You can do it!

The pilot lifts the helicopter off the ground, and I immediately plant my head into Cal’s arm from the unsteadiness of take-off. You are such a chicken shit, Jenna! I feel us slowly spinning 180 degrees and push forward to our destination. I peek my eyes out when Cal tells me we are flying over the Las Vegas Strip. He points out our hotel, and it is amazing to see how massive all the hotels are from above. Residential houses start to appear, but soon the desert changes to ridges and Lake Mead is in our sights. The glittering teal of the water is so stunning that I grab my phone to take pictures. We veer right, and head over to the structural masterpiece of the Hoover Dam, the pilot giving us some background information on the architectural aspect of it as we fly over. We make our way over parts of the Mojave Desert, one side of the helicopter giving us glimpses of Lake Mead, the other side showing us the vastness of the desert. I snap more pictures, trying to stop my mind from telling my eyes to look below at the glass windows underneath my feet, not wanting to put more mental images of crashing inside my head. Every little tiny dip makes me want to bury my head back into Cal’s strong arms, but the anticipation of being in the Canyon soon makes me keep my big girl panties on. The pilot announces that we are approaching the edge of the rim, and I gasp at the sheer beauty as we enter into the Grand Canyon. The colors of the landscaping and the magnitude of the size seem never-ending. We are silent as we continue snapping photos of the mesmerizing views. We follow the twists and turns of the Colorado River as we enter into the canyon and descend below the rim. As we make our way lower into the canyon, the pilot informs us that we will be landing on the river’s edge at the bottom of the canyon. I look at Cal with questioning eyes as to why we would be landing, but all he does is raise his eyebrows and smiles. A ramp with a boat docked at it comes to view as we arrive for landing. We touch down, and the pilot informs us to wait until the rotor stops for us to exit.

“Are we about to get on that boat?” I point towards it.

“I figured a tour from the sky just wasn’t enough,” he shrugs with a sexy smile as an attendant opens our door. Cal grabs my purse for me and we head to the boat. We are greeted by our tour guide who helps us on. We sit back and relax as we cruise up and down the Colorado River, taking photos of the rock layers that were created from the consistent erosion of the river, revealing millions of years of the Earth’s history. Forty-five minutes later, we arrive back to the dock and depart the boat. As we make our way back up to the helicopter, I notice a table dressed with a tablecloth and chairs for two people.

“I hope you enjoyed the boat ride, Mr. Harrington and Ms. Pruitt. Lunch is ready for you. We will have thirty minutes of private time until the public tours start to arrive,” our pilot gestures for us to sit down. He pours us some champagne and leaves us to eat our lunch.

“A toast to the Grand Canyon!” Cal clinks his glass to mine and we take a sip of the bubbly.

“I can’t believe we’re here doing this,” I say, still in disbelief over the experience of it so far.

“I remember looking at photos of the Grand Canyon as a young lad in school, but photos don’t even do it justice.”

“What were you like as a boy in school?” I ask, before taking a bite of my sandwich, trying to envision what he may have looked like.

“I was awkward and fat,” he laughs, shaking his head at his memories. “I was popular because when people would make fun of me, I would start making fun of myself with them. Self-deprecation. One day, my sister dragged me to her boyfriend’s rugby game and I fell in love with the sport. It was the first time I felt a part of something. The weight quickly came off and I have to work very hard to keep it off.”

“I have a hard time believing that,” I say, glancing at his body that seems to have zero body fat.

“Life is too short to deprive yourself of pizza and Guinness,” he laughs. “I am very regimented before and during a movie, but I always give myself cheat days. Sometimes one day a week, sometimes weeks on end. What were you like in school?”

“I was a nerd, but not part of any one clique. I tried to befriend everybody, but of course, that is never possible in high school. I played softball for one year, but did not like my coach. Yearbook and student government were my true passion during those four years.”

“And here I was picturing you as a hot cheerleader,” he bestows his devilish smile upon me.

“Sorry to disillusion your fantasy,” the idea of me being a cheerleader laughable.

“No need to be sorry as reality is proving to be far better than fantasy.” He holds my gaze and I cannot look away. An overwhelming urge to kiss him suddenly takes over me. Our pilot interrupts my thoughts to remind us it is time to go. We take a couple more photos and load up into the helicopter for take-off. Cal holds my hand again as we slowly lift off, and head up the Colorado River, moving into the South Rim of the Canyon. The views of the Grand Canyon are completely indescribable. The pilot takes the helicopter north, and then west as we head back to Las Vegas, passing the Valley of Fire and Lake Mead on our way. The ridges of the Canyon start to slowly fade away as the outskirts of Las Vegas come into view and finally the Strip, where we do one more fly by before we land. The landing pad for our helicopter comes into view, and our pilot steadily makes a safe landing.

We take off our headphones and unbuckle our seat belts as we wait for the rotor to stop spinning to exit. I turn to Cal, not knowing how I can ever pay him back for the unbelievable experience that I wouldn’t have treated myself to.

“Today was one of the most memorable days I have had in a really long time. Thank you for such a special day.” I lean in to hug him and kiss his cheek, but he turns his head, and my lips land on his mouth. He holds me in place so that I cannot pull away, his sensual lips demanding that I stay. His mouth is more than what I imagined - warm, firm lips that taste so good that I want more. I put my hands in his hair and bring him closer. He caresses his tongue against my lips, and I open them with a low moan escaping. He deepens the kiss and our whole environment fades away, so lost am I in the moment, in him. A knock on the window startles us apart as we look at the pilot, who sheepishly gives us a smile. “Sorry,” I mutter to the pilot as he helps me out of the helicopter. We thank him and head to the waiting car to take us back to our hotel. As soon as the driver closes the door after us, Cal grabs me and continues to devour my lips, each thrust of his tongue increasing my appetite for him. We stay this way for the whole car ride until the driver’s honk of the horn makes us break away. I try to catch my breath, my chest moving up and down in rapid movements.

“Have dinner with me tonight,” he commands, as he kisses up the side of my neck.

“Okay,” I agree, shivering from the heat of his kisses.

“I promise you I will make it worth your while - no French food.” He touches his forehead to mine as I smile at his joke.

The car pulls into the main entrance of our hotel and stops for the valet to open my door.

“I’ll see you at 7:30 p.m.” Cal kisses my hand and I depart the car. As I walk into the hotel, I immediately go shopping for clothes, especially some upgraded underwear.